Problem Rectified

If a problem shared is a problem halved what is a problem rectified?
I don't really know, but I know about problem rectifiers. A rectifier, for those not in the know, and in car terms at least, is this small box about the size of a pack of cigarettes, made of aluminium and with fins for cooling, and inside which witchcraft happens. Somehow, and if I dug out my O level physics notes I could probably explain it much better, an AC electrical current goes in, and a DC current comes out. Clever stuff, if you have say an alternator or dynamo on a car engine and wish to charge a battery with which to start the engine again once it's stopped.

Well that's the theory anyhow.
Since Kermit's last little tantrum when he threw off his variator and "failed to proceed" his behaviour has been impecabble. (A failure to proceed is a Rolls Royce term, of course a Rolls never, ever breaks down. I have borrowed the term simply because I do not consider this a breakdown. A breakdown by defintion requires a breakdwon truck to recover the vehicle - as i rectified the fault at the roadside this was just a temporary failure to proceed)

Anyhow I digress. The point is that Kermit the small boxy plastic green coloured diesel engine Microcar was performing brilliantly, returning wonderful economy using free waste vegetable oil - oh yes, life was good. Even the stereo sounded good.
Then I noticed, or did I imagine, that the headlamps were getting a little dimmer? And was the car just a little more reluctant to start? And Bugger! had the battery gone flat and left me stranded at work? Well I got a jump off the boss (No smutty comments at the back please!) and got home okay, and put the battery on charge. I figured that maybe usage of the demister, headlamps heater et all along withthe veg oil heater for the first time this autumn might just have pot a strain on the battery, but then thinking back wasnt it a new battery in February? Check those receipts - why yes it was. Surely not a dying battery then. It recharged okay and holds 12.7 volts. With the battery rcharged the car started on it's own, but mysteriulsy the battery light now stayed on! Not charging then. I can only assume that before the battery was so flat it didn;t have enough charge to show it wasn't charging?????

Anyhow a check with the voltmeter showed the alternator kicking out a healthy 17 volts AC.
The Battery was receiving a very unhealthy 0 volts. Now this car has a wiring system that was obviously put together by blind pughs' colour blind apprentice. The colours of the wire may well mean something to the French, but more likely they were chosen for artistic reasons, or equally likely because that colour was nearest the car on the shelf. However I traced the wiring and found out eventually that all was (more or less) as it should be. The last check I made was of the voltage rectifier earth lead - low and behold therin lies the problem. Sorted with a quick rub with wet and dry, and a wonderful 17 volts now reaches the battery at full revs, with about 5 volts on tickover, so an average of about 12volts in daily useage which'll do for me thank you.

The above flat battery does not however constitute a breakdown merely another failure to procedd, so the Ambra remains 100% reliable to date - or not!